The site at Bushmills was really good, and very full of caravans and campervans. And dogs! The only downside was that the dog walk was a very short one, with swans nearby, making for noisy passage as the swans honked and the dogs barked! In the morning we packed up and by shortly after 9 am we reached the Giants Causeway. The weather was overcast but dry, so we beat the hordes of coachborne tourists to the causeway itself, via a nearby bay where we ran Jack off the lead. As we reached the first hexagonal stones of the causeway the heavens opened and we began to get really wet. Ju took this picture of me with Jack just as the rain started. We took a look at the rest of the site and boggled at the extent and variety of these stones and columns, hid round a corner from the worst of the rain, and climbed thankfully into the shuttle bus for the short run back up to the centre, where we had a coffee and a muffin, and bought Jack a small cuddly shark to chew to death! And a tea towel!

Decidedly we had done the right thing that time with Morag at Arduine Garden, when we decided to join the National Trust! I for one had not realised that our membership would entitle us to visit National Trust sites here in Northern Ireland for free, and park the van for free in their car parks. Both the rope bridge and the causeway were free for us!

We then continued along the A2 coastal route through Portrush, which I remembered from years ago as a sort of Ulster Blackpool, found a Tesco supermarket and a filling station, and stocked up for the next few days. Then we headed inland, helped and hindered by turns by our onboard GPS, and eventually found Drumaheglis campsite by the banks of the River Bann. We were impressed on the way by the orderly farmland and countryside we were passing through, fields bordered by hedges, and a wide variety of rather good-looking country houses and farms.
The campsite was right by the river marina, and we were delighted to get the van under the 2 metre barrier at the entrance! We had prebooked a nice quiet pitch at the end of a section of the site, and we had some trees beside us, so I rigged up the washing line and caught up on some laundry. The rain had cleared away by then. As the afternoon wore on more and more caravans turned up until every pitch was taken, and gangs of children were playing around us. Ah well!

On Saturday morning we packed up early again and set off for the banks of Lough Foyle. Ju had spotted an RSPB site, and navigated us to it with only one false move. The location was great, the end of a single track road with an area of firm standing, right next to the beach. No sign of the RSPB though! We walked Jack along the sand, off the lead for the most part, and spent most of the morning there. Then we drove up to Magilligan Point and its Martello Tower, past a huge prison which was not shown on our map. The sunshine was strong and warm on the dunes near the tower, so we sunbathed for a while! Then we moved on to find our campsite for the night at Benone, on an amazing long sandy beach, complete with lifeguards and ice cream vans. Our campsite was full to squeaking point with families enjoying the bank holiday.

On Sunday we headed for Derry, the plan was to find a parking spot and walk the dog and ourselves round the city. We left the van parked just off the main drag and went into the city to walk round the walls. The only other city we can remember doing this in was Chester, some years ago. It was full of history, as was the Guildhall, but we decided that was enough stimulation for one day and headed for the campsite which Bren and Ek recommended.